Defensive driving is the practice of driving without redirecting your focus from what’s going on around you. It helps to save time, money, and most importantly, lives.
Here are the defensive driving tips:
1. Drive the speed limit
It’s important to drive at the speed limit regardless of the neighboring drivers on the road. Junctions and intersections are especially the riskiest points on the roadway. That’s why slow driving is necessary to avoid causing unnecessary accidents at the places we’ve just mentioned.
The speed limit allows you easily control your vehicle. For instance, you can make an easy stop when the traffic lights turn red at a low speed.
Also, it may not be easy to control your vehicle during bad weather conditions. But with a low speed, it becomes effortless to stop the vehicle. So, drivers should emphasize slow driving to enhance their vehicle control reaction improve their reaction time.
2. Do away with Distractions
There are a lot of distractions that can lead to unsafe driving. This includes playing music too loud, texting, making phone calls, and even involvements with passengers. Some distractions are unavoidable, but others can be controlled.
Phone distractions alone contribute to the majority of the causes of vehicle crashes every year. Technology is fundamental, but when misused, it can potentially harm you, especially while driving.
3. Keep a balanced distance
While driving, your vehicle should be at a safe distance from the vehicle ahead of you. If you are required to stop, you can do it gently instead of screeching to a halt.
Overlooking can easily lead to crashes which could potentially lead to injuries, fines, and other expenses. Also, packing together down a roadway is unsafe that drivers should avoid. Keep a 3-4 second distance between you and the car ahead of you.
4. Create an escape route
It would help if you were prepared to find a safe way out when unexpected situations were on the road. It may help you when accidents happen or possibly even prevent accidents.
It’s every driver’s responsibility to be aware of other drivers on the road. This allows you to know and find various space options to stop. It’s also easy for you to get out of the way when your path is blocked by other vehicles. But even so, drivers must have the superior reaction time to make such abrupt changes on the road to avoid risky situations.
5. Obey the 3-4 second rule.
Drivers must observe the following time to avoid collisions with other vehicles. The best way to achieve this is to pay attention to the 3-4 second rule, enabling you to stop safely behind the vehicle ahead of you.
Even more important is to increase your following time slightly more than normal during poor weather conditions such as fog, rain, and at night. This allows you enough time to react when visibility is reduced
6. Observe your Environment.
It’s recommended to look at your side mirrors always to observe what is going on around you. Doing so enables you to stop or slow down when you see a dangerous situation. Also, by paying attention to the surroundings, you’ll be able to look out for other road users, pedestrians, and animals.
Conclusion
Defensive driving is a necessary quality for every driver. Therefore, we should emphasize it to reduce the possibility of getting involved in an accident. The above tips will help you to practice and perfect your defensive driving.
